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The Energy Glut, by Ian Roberts, Phil Edwards
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Worldwide, over a billion people are overweight and 300 million are obese. At the same time, global warming threatens the survival of our species. The Energy Glut shows how the heating of our planet and the bulging of our waistlines are manifestations of the same global malaise. Ian Roberts presents a frightening vision of humanity besieged by a food industry pushing a surfeit of energy-dense food, while the rise of the car means we have fewer opportunities to move our bodies than ever before. This insightful, exciting new work explains why getting fatter is a political rather than a personal problem, and why tackling climate change could be the next great public health advance.
- Sales Rank: #2153986 in eBooks
- Published on: 2013-04-04
- Released on: 2013-04-04
- Format: Kindle eBook
Review
"This book is quite something. An eminent Professor of Public Health turns his hand to forensics and pathology, clinically dissecting the fabric of what we so complacently call ‘modern civilisation’. . . The insights derived from this autopsy – about the role of governments, big business and the ‘petro-nutritional complex’ – are devastating, making ‘the energy glut’ a ‘must-read’ for anyone involved in public health, nutrition, the environment, transport and energy policy. You may not agree with all of the conclusions, but you will be hard put to ignore the analysis.”--Jonathan Porritt, Founder Director, Forum for the Future
About the Author
Ian Roberts is Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Great study--horrible solutions
By A. J. Howells
Roberts' manifesto on the over-consumption of energy and its correlation to physical health is certainly compelling and eye-opening; however, it suffers from serious flaws and fails to present a practical solution to the problem.
The engaging parts of this book are ripe with statistical correlations of the use of fossil fuels in cars linked with life-threatening behaviors, such as human inertia and car accidents. The chapters that go in depth about car accidents are particularly fascinating. Roberts has done a lot of homework in this field and presents plenty of examples of the adolescent death by vehicle rates increasing as global car usage increases. This sounds pretty obvious, but the picture is painted for us complete with corrupt political systems blaming the victim pretty consistently, and pointing toward statistically ineffective driver education programs as a solution.
If the entire book was about this single aspect of the subject, I'd be satisfied. Perhaps Roberts could have come up with some practical solutions had this been the case. Unfortunately, his solution involves an overhaul of the entire modern world, forcing virtually all global citizens to turn toward cycling to make their commutes. If this happens, jobs would be more centralized and people wouldn't have to make long commutes.
Don't get me wrong--if I could ride a bike to work, I would. I'd even do it if my job was within five miles of my house, but it's not. Additionally, I go from one job on the east side of Pittsburgh, to another one on the west side, on an almost daily basis. Also, I'm a certified teacher. If everyone deciding to cycle to work brought jobs "to them" rather than vice versa, I'd probably still be out of luck, because only so many schools can service a local area.
Roberts even suggests a sin tax be placed on gasoline, much like the one placed on cigarettes. According to him, every time we fill up our gas tank, we make the decision continue a gruesome cycle of road deaths.
I understand that when I start my truck down the road I stand a chance of killing someone. I also understand that when I light up a cigarette, I stand a chance of developing life-threatening ailments in my future. The difference is that I don't need to smoke a cigarette in order to survive financially. Do I have a choice in filling up my tank? Sure, I don't have to do it. Unless, that is, I want to keep my jobs and survive financially.
The worst part about this book is that I can see gaping holes that Roberts could have filled with more practical solutions than the nonsense he presents. Why not strengthen the public transportation system in a manner that works side-by-side with cyclists? I'll cycle to work if a bus can take me part of the way there. I might never use my car again if it takes up the lengthy part of my trip. Wouldn't it be possible to create certain kinds of buses that help transport bicycles?
Perhaps this is a ludicrous idea as well. Would it work? Probably not. But it's a lot more foreseeable than Roberts' nonsense. The only way I see Roberts' so-called solutions ever being put into place is if the use of fossil fuels is so depleted and the world is in such a state of anarchy that this is forced into place. There isn't a butterfly's chance in hell that the industrialized side of the world would ever allow something like this to work as a practical alternative to the laziness of everyday life. Would it be nice if it did? Sure, it would. But, as they say, wish in one hand and you know what to do in the other. See which fills up first.
If you're looking for something to solve global warming, don't look here if you want real world solutions. That being said, the book is not completely lost on the world. If you liked Freakonomics, the statistical correlations presented here can be quite fascinating (there are a lot more than what I've made light of previously). If you decide to read it for that, ignore the "solutions" as best as you can.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
An insightful and engaging look at food, fuel, energy and excess.
By Kelly Garbato
Note: I received a free copy of THE ENERGY GLUT through Library Thing's Early Reviewer program.
While researching the link between traffic-related injuries and fatalities, trends in car usage, and public health issues such as obesity, Ian Roberts - a public health professor in Britain and a former practicing physician - developed a simple yet radical premise: that the discovery and subsequent adoption of fossil fuels as a cheap source of energy can be directly implicated in the "obesity epidemic" as well as global climate change. Just as cheap oil powers our cars, so too does it make possible the abundance of energy-dense foods that feed human bodies. Designed for movement, these bodies grow increasingly sedentary in a "motorized" world, thus compounding the problem. The result? Congested roadways, air and water pollution, fewer green public spaces, reduced opportunities for movement, and overall poor public health.
Roberts adeptly demonstrates how seemingly disparate issues are connected, oftentimes exhibiting multiple points of intersection. Like threads in a tapestry, you cannot tug on one without disturbing the others. Likewise, in linking a supposedly personal failing - obesity - with larger societal trends, THE ENERGY GLUT reflects that good ol' feminist adage of the '60s, namely: the personal is political (and the political, personal). Consider, for example, the following observations made by Roberts:
Artificially cheap oil paves the way for the widespread availability and use of motor vehicles powered by fossil fuels:
* The use of motor vehicles is positively correlated with BMI, at both the individual and societal levels - as car use increases, so too does BMI;
* Likewise, modes of active transport - walking, cycling, taking the subway - are negatively correlated with BMI;
* As the amount of kinetic energy (i.e., in the form of motor vehicles) on the roadways increases, so too does the danger to pedestrians, creating a tension between the two groups. Rather than risk injury or death, pedestrians are apt to abandon walking and cycling in whole or part.;
* Public policies - such as those favoring motor vehicle over foot and cycle traffic - exacerbate the problem, such that "might makes right," personally and politically;
* Thus begins a "motorized arms race which drives the downward spiral of walking and cycling": pedestrians take to cars in greater numbers, thus making the roads more dangerous for remaining pedestrians, and so on;
* As people are driven indoors and into cars, streets and sidewalks become less hospitable, giving rise to violence and discouraging a sense of community;
* The increased motorization of movement encourages suburban sprawl, which leads to longer commutes;
* Larger people require larger vehicles, which consume more gas;
* Larger vehicles generate more kinetic energy, thus making the roadways less safe for those driving smaller vehicles;
* Consumers buy increasingly large vehicles because they're safer for the occupants in the event of an accident;
* The congestion of our roadways with more and larger vehicles slows down traffic, increasing the amount of time spent in cars and the amount of gas burned.
Meanwhile, cheap oil also leads to a glut of energy-dense foods:
* Discovered in the early 20th century, the Haber-Bosch process made it possible to increase food yields dramatically by turning hydrogen and nitrogen into an ammonia fertilizer; this reaction is energy-intensive and reliant upon fossil fuels, consuming 2% of the world's energy supply;
* Oil is also used to process, package, distribute, store, cook and dispose of food and food waste;
* Due to overt and hidden subsidies, this food (like fuel) is artificially cheap;
* As food prices fall, consumption rises;
* Unhealthy, energy-dense, processed foods are cheaper than their healthier counterparts, such as fresh fruits and vegetables;
* The increased consumption of fats and sugars, coupled with a decrease in movement, leads to weight gain, both individually and collectively (as evidenced by our increasing BMIs);
* Whereas we used to forage for food, today we drive to the supermarket to buy it;
* The use of a car vs. active transport means that we buy more food than we would otherwise;
* This over-consumption leads to food waste - food is thrown out like garbage, making its way to landfills, where it will release methane;
* Supermarkets are increasingly located in suburban areas, thus resulting in longer drives;
* The decreased opportunities for movement, coupled with the prevalence of cheap, unhealthy foods - and the health problems associated with each - gives rise to entire industries which might not have otherwise existed. Money and time that could be more wisely spent are wasted on diet and exercise, and public health dollars are squandered on "curing" obesity-related diseases.
Many of these points directly influence and are influenced by at least several others. For example, Roberts points out that the design of highways (speed, placement) - paid for with taxpayer dollars - funnels consumers past small, locally owned neighborhood business and to large chain megastores, thus further concentrating wealth in the hands of few. At the same time, highways encourage suburban sprawl, increase the amount of kinetic energy on the road, are necessarily inhospitable to pedestrians, and encourage driving over walking. Additionally, these chain stores (including convenience stores situated in gas stations!) primarily trade in unhealthy, energy-dense foods that only contribute to obesity - which they're happy to sell you a pill or diet plan for, natch.
In Roberts's words, "[P]etroleum replaces food as the primary source of energy for human movement." Fueling our cars as well as our bodies, our abuse of this cheap, finite energy source is responsible for climate change in myriad ways. Food, fuel, fatness, traffic fatalities: they're all connected.
Much of the criticism I've seen of THE ENERGY GLUT involves "personal responsibility": fatness isn't an environmental condition or related to social issues, as Roberts claims, but rather the sole responsibility of the individual. But how else to explain the average increase in BMI - and the upward trend in BMI distribution - in industrialized nations? Have we morphed into a nation of gluttons lacking in self-control, or could there possibly be some shared societal factors at play? Given that the average BMI of a population tends to increase when car usage replaces the human body as the primary mode of transport, I think the latter likely.
Additionally, "personal responsibility" is fine and good - assuming, of course, that all members of a society have equal, ready opportunity to assert control over their environment. Sadly, this is far from the case. Take, for example, the United States. Due to a lack of grocery stores (and corresponding abundance of fast food joints), those living in low-income, urban areas do not have ready access to fresh, healthy foods. At school, the situation isn't any better; public school kids are served the same unhealthy animal ag. food service slop as are are prison inmates. (Not that prison inmates should be served slop, either!) These families are also more likely to live in heavily congested, crime-riddled neighborhoods, which hardly make for safe areas of play and movement. At the same time, they cannot afford to purchase exercise equipment or gym memberships; nor can their neighborhoods and schools afford to construct and maintain playground equipment. All of this converges to create an environment in which the opportunity to live a healthy lifestyle is a luxury. Shaming people into changing factors beyond their control is not only futile - it's just plain cruel.
Such criticisms also ignore Roberts's advice for solving these problems: three of the last five chapters feature steps that one can take at the individual level, such as walking and bicycling whenever possible; switching to a diet rich in fresh, plant-based foods; purchasing and consuming less; planting greenery in front of one's home and streetside; engaging with one's neighbors; and lobbying the local government for reduced speed limits. While he's cognizant of the political and societal factors underlying obesity, Roberts also encourages individuals to take action at the micro level.
Other, more radical solutions involve adopting the Contraction and Convergence proposal for reducing greenhouse gas emissions set forth by the Global Commons Institute in the early '90s. C&C involves reducing overall global emissions in such a way that's fair to developing nations. This plan would entail national carbon credits that could be bought and sold between carbon-frugal and carbon-wasteful countries, thus resulting in a transfer of wealth between rich and poor nations. In contrast to many "charitable aid" programs, developing nations could ideally use these resources to further their own national interests, rather than those of the aid-giving governments (and corporations).
This is important, as Roberts includes developing countries such as China, India, Senegal and Nigeria in his analysis; for example, his look at proposed road infrastructure programs in African countries illustrates how such efforts are less about industrialized countries helping impoverished nations - and more about industrialized countries helping themselves to the natural resources belonging to the unfortunate "beneficiary" nations. At the same time, an increase in transnational trade threatens to trigger the same motorization of movement - and attendant problems - seen in the U.S. in the latter half of the 20th century. An investment in bicycles, Roberts argues, would do more to help the average Tanzanian than a hundred miles of paved roadways. As with all of his premises, Roberts produces the research to back it up.
Since I'm only marginally familiar with the intricacies of the fat acceptance movement, I'm afraid I can't offer a very nuanced critique of Roberts's infatuation with BMI as a measure of health. To his credit, he does stress that fatness and obesity is largely an environmental problem; you won't find any fat shaming here. On the other hand, his "less is always best" argument strikes me as somewhat irresponsible, if not downright dangerous:
"Accumulating body fat is like accumulating debt. It is better to be $25 in debt than to be $30 in debt, but being only $20 in debt is better still." [whereas debt = BMI]
Yes, a lower BMI is better - until it isn't. Just as one can be too fat, there is such a thing as too thin. See, e.g., the symptoms of anorexia; while Roberts is quick to point out that eating disorders are excepted from his analogy, some of the health problems associated with anorexia - amenorrhoea, heart failure, malnutrition - are also likely to be present in those with low or no body fat. And whereas one can actually be owed money, there is not such thing as negative body fat.
From a vegan perspective, I am a bit disappointed that Roberts doesn't so much as mention veganism (or even vegetarianism) in passing. While he does implicate animal agriculture in climate change ("meat is heat") - and tie this highly energy-intensive form of farming to a variety of issues to both fuel and fatness - his strongest argument in favor of a plant-based diet is `eat more fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes.' On the flip side, the only direct example of speciesism is Roberts's demand that we eat less meat so that those in developing nations can eat more. It's a real WTF! moment, but thankfully it's also an anomaly.
Overall, I found the book incredibly insightful, exciting and witty. (Seriously, I can't wait for the weather to thaw, as I've made a commitment to get less "exercise" and more dog walking time in come spring!) A quick read, easily devoured in several hours, THE ENERGY GLUT will inspire you too look at familiar issues from a fresh, panoramic perspective. Time and again, Roberts picks up a seemingly-forgotten thread, tying it to a disparate, distant neighbor, weaving for the reader the story of our interconnected worlds.
Five stars: though not without minor faults, THE ENERGY GLUT is a must-read.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Down with the petro-nutritional complex!
By Prasanna Karmarkar
This book is essential reading for anyone who cares about their own health and the health of the planet. The book will help you understand that the two are not distinct projects - indeed, they are indistinguishable from each other. It provides guidelines to individuals as well as governments on where to start on the long road back.
It packs a big wallop for a small book. You should read it sitting down.
Chapter by chapter, Ian Roberts and Phil Edwards dissect the economic forces and vested-interests that have made the modern world the way it is - BMIs trending upwards, too much automation, not enough physical activity, automobiles forcing their way into every available nook and edging out the older kinder ways of transportation - walking, runnning and cycling.
The authors' thesis in a nutshell - The behaviour that makes us fat ALSO warms the globe. A chapter titled "Fat people and fat populations" will make you sit up and take notice. Unless of course, you are too fat to do so!
Their charge is that we are manipulated into accepting the responsibility for our own health. The "If you are NOT able to put in the 10 hours a week of gym and stay fit, clearly it is your fault that you're getting fat and unhealthy" school of thought. Along with most of your, I was a part of that school. Dropping out never felt so good!
The modern notion is that one's inability to be fit (and consequently, disease-free), is one's own fault and weakness. NO, say the authors. This is a systemic problem, and the governments (the system they create) are to blame.
Creating a world in which roads play a central role, a world planned around the automobile, has had the effect of cutting down physical activity (work commute, grocery commute) and increasing consumption (buying too much food, too much energy dense food, at that). This is seen in the increasing rate of disease caused by the combination of a sedentary, over-mechanised lifestyle and high energy-density foods. Not to speak of the cost - and it is high - of the accidents and loss to life that automobile dependence creates.
Roberts and Edwards blow the cover off the food industry's propaganda, and show us how the message "eat less" got transmogrified over the years into the self-serving "eat at least 2500 calories/day".
There's a great expose of the "petro-nutritional" complex - supermarkets, large free parking lots, the car lobby, the fuel lobby all working with complicit money-grubbing governments in developing countries to build more roads, and put more cars that will burn even more fuel. Here in India, we're mute witnesses to this ghastly trend.
A responsible government's job (say the authors) is to provide for walking spaces and roads that are cycle-friendly, plan development in such a way that it is not necessary to travel vast distances (which necessitates motorized transportation) for anything - schools, supplies or work. Kids don't cycle to school anymore because the roads aren't safe, and this is simply a symptom and sets the tone for the rest of their lives.
Here's a book that actually advises against exercise! Needing to block your time, and pay money to be trapped inside an airconditioned room to "work out", is a failure of the system.
There are recommendations on how you can claim your life back. It starts with a conscious rejection of being part of the energy glut. For individuals, there is advise on how to correctly stock your house with low energy density foods, how to do your bit to reduce the vehicular mass on the roads. For the governments, there are proposals for a worldwide system of carbon credits that can help us claw our way of this mess.
It is ambitious, and the policy changes will probably necessitate the overnight death of every politician and captain of industry. However the personal revolution - your right to make your own home a "low energy retreat" from a high energy world, that can start happening right away.
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